By Rowena Dato Cuanico

Rowena ‘Weng’ Dato Cuanico, who has written in these pages before, is one of three lay missionaries from the Philippines currently in Fiji.

Rowena Dato Cuanico

After waiting for nearly eight months for our first mission assignment, I heaved a sigh of relief and excitement as the plane touched down at Nadi International Airport, Fiji, on 29 October 2000. ‘Lord, this is it,’ were the only words that I could muster and say to myself as everything that I wished, hoped and prayed for was finally becoming real. I hardly slept on the ten-hour flight from Seoul since during the night. I was awakened at least four times by the captain’s voice telling us to fasten our seatbelts because of turbulence. My drowsiness, fatigue and anxieties vanished quickly as I and five other lay missionaries from thePhilippines were greeted by the bright and glorious splendor of that Sunday morning and by the smiles of friendly faces. Perhaps, the big smile on Father Charlie Duster’s face and his warm handshake said it all in his Bula, Welcome to Fiji!

The first weeks

During those early weeks I hardly noticed day turn into night or night into day. I met many very warm and friendly people. In a short period of time I gained so many friends. I visited some of the parishes where Columbans serve and participated in the Columban Companions’ Day celebration. I found the experiences simply overwhelming and felt that all deserved to be written about. However, nothing beats the ‘peeling the onions and carrots’ experience

I remembered very well how the process of a missionary’s gradual insertion into the community was emphasized strongly during our formation program. Over and over, I would hear this friendly piece of advice: be sensitive to and respectful of the culture. While some people, particularly Columban friends, knew that we were coming, there was no messianic proclamation to announce our arrival! And so, during our first week in Fiji, the gradual insertion strategy was always at the back of my mind. It wasn’t until the second week that this was to be put into test.

Fijian funeral

Following the death of Columban Father Jim Rathbun, from New Zealand, on 12 November, and in accordance with Fijian tradition, the reguregu, a ceremony in which people pay their respects to the deceased, was held the day before the funeral. During the reguregu, the official mourning family of the Columbans, the parish and Father Jim’s family from New Zealand, were on hand to receive expressions of sympathy and condolences in the form of traditional Fijian gifts like mats and yaqona, the latter in the form of powder made from the root of a pepper tree and that is made into the ceremonial drink with the same name. A tent was put up between the church and the hall for the purpose along with a temporary kitchen beside the latter. Most of the men were in the tent while the women were in the hall, praying and singing hymns. We were with the women, introducing ourselves and expressing thanks to people who came to offer their sympathy.

Fun in the kitchen

We noticed that there were only a few people working in the kitchen. Yet it seemed that there was so much work to be done. Our offer to help was accepted gratefully. So, the six of us Filipino lay missionaries and Father Dave Kenneally, an Irish Columban visiting fromPakistan, went to work on the nearly 30 kgs of carrots and onions. A production line was installed with two peeling the onions, three peeling the carrots and two others slicing them. We maintained a high standard particularly with regard to the size of the carrot slices. Those that didn’t pass quality control were returned to the production line. I never imagined that peeling onions and carrots could be such fun and so enjoyable. Everybody seemed to be looking at us, obviously enjoying what they were seeing. We shared many jokes and funny stories. However, we also took the opportunity to share our own stories. Father Dave told of his missionary experiences in Pakistan and we shared our vocation stories. But to me, it was more than this.

Happy where I belong

For one, it gave me a great sense of belonging to the Columbans and to the community. I truly felt that I was part of the family, sharing its joys, pains, responsibilities and commitments. I was neither a guest nor a tourist, but one of them, sharing the pain of the Columbans and the parish because of Father Jim’s death. And by sharing in the work needed at that particular time, I also felt that I was a part of the community. I was able to seize the moment by simply being there.

Secondly, it made me realize that on a missionary journey, there are no big or small things, no great or lowly tasks. Everything matters - whether one is giving a homily, visiting a family, sharing a joke, learning a new Fijian or Indo-Fijian word and yes, peeling carrots and onions. This means that I could always be open to the prompting of the Spirit and willing to respond, joyfully and gratefully.

Joy in simple things

It also made me understand fully that mission is sharing. A missionary’s heart is one willing to share and to be shared. I realized that there was nothing extraordinary in what I did and shared, only a skill in peeling carrots and onions that I learned from my father when I was young. But what seemed to be an ordinary skill turned out to be a great gift on mission.

I never fully realized how peeling onions and carrots could touch the lives of people until the reception after the funeral. I was welcomed with smiles and hugs by the women in mourning and by the food committee. Some were telling people to eat the coleslaw because we peeled the carrots. Perhaps it became the biggest joke during the reception. It seemed that people remembered us for peeling the carrots and onions and for being with and one of them.

From this remarkable experience, I have been thinking that perhaps how to peel onions and carrots should be part of the formation program! Through this, the Fijians won my heart and I too won their hearts.